


son of a dragonlord

by daisy_chains



Series: speak with honesty [3]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Episode: s02e13 The Last Dragonlord, Gen, partial reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-28
Updated: 2018-06-28
Packaged: 2019-05-29 18:24:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15078998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daisy_chains/pseuds/daisy_chains
Summary: “What is wrong with you today?”





	son of a dragonlord

“Merlin. Are you missing Gaius?”

“Something like that.” Gaius’ last words to Merlin run through his mind, a warning not to run his mouth like he always does.

‘ _Merlin, whatever happens, you must not let Arthur know who this man is. Uther would view the son of a dragonlord with the deepest suspicion_ ,’ he had said. Merlin hesitates. If he’s supposed to help Arthur bring magic back to the land after he becomes king, why should he keep unnecessary secrets regarding magic from the man? Of course, _unnecessary_ might be a bit of a stretch, but he’s tired of keeping secrets. His whole life is one giant secret wrapped in a fool’s guise. Still, he hesitates.

“Well, what is it, then?” Arthur deserves to know. He deserves this bit of trust, he’s earned it and difference of stations be damned, Merlin won’t keep this secret from his friend if he doesn’t have to. Sending a silent apology his mentor’s way, the warlock sits up in bed and turns to face the prince. 

“Gaius… he told me something earlier. About the dragonlord.” This piques Arthur’s interest, who sits up as well and fixes a demanding glare at his servant. “The - the dragonlord… when he escaped your father -”

Arthur growls, displeased at Merlin’s statement though he knows it to be true. 

“- he took refuge in Ealdor.” 

“What?” Whatever the prince expected Merlin to say, it clearly hadn’t been this, though the servant would’ve been surprised if it had been otherwise. He nods, drawing in a shaky breath as if it might be his last, then continues.

“My mother took him in.” The warlock pauses, watching Arthur carefully to see if he has put the pieces together. The confusion that paints the prince’s face is all the answer he needs. “He and my mother fell in love, but when your father sent knights after him, he fled.”

_Gods, don’t make me say it_ , he begs silently, fear and his instinct to hide and lie overpowering his determination to share this information with his friend. Fortunately, Arthur isn’t quite that dense.

“He’s your father.” Despite his hope that Arthur would figure it out when he laid it out so plainly, Merlin flinches. He nods, refusing to meet the prince’s eyes. A minute passes like this, the prince staring at his servant who looks two seconds away from bolting. Then Arthur sighs. “Merlin, look at me.”

Reluctantly, the warlock glances at the prince, then stares resolutely at a place above the other man’s head.

“I’m not going to tell my father.”

“What?”

“You’re the _son_ of a dragonlord, not one yourself. Besides, you’ve never met the man before, so he couldn’t have influenced you at all. There’s no reason to share such an irrelevant piece of information.”

“But -”

“And besides, your mother is a saint. She deserves to be happy.”

“You mean…”

“We’ll convince Balinor to help us, then we’ll send him to Ealdor. That way, he won’t be in Camelot and my father, while he would still be wary with the dragonlord alive and well, would not be able to do anything without risking war.”

“Thank you, Arthur.”

**Author's Note:**

> Balinor does live and go to Ealdor where he and Hunith reconnect. 
> 
> A some of the dialogue (the summary and the first two bits of dialogue in the fic) are taken directly from the transcript on the Merlin wiki.


End file.
